Settings for Sending SMS Messages

The program has the two following options for sending monitoring alert notifications using SMS: 1) Sending SMS via the Email-to-SMS gateway, 2) Sending SMS directly using a connected GSM phone. Let us consider both methods in details. Each method is configured independently in the program settings.

1. The program can send SMS via E-Mail or HTTP using special SMS gateways.

The SMS gateway is a special server on the Internet which can send SMS messages without using your mobile phone. It receives email messages or HTTP requests in a special format, and then sends SMS to the specified recipient. The gateways can be free (and have some limitations on the number of messages you can send per day or month) and paid.

For sending SMS using a gateway, you should first configure the SMS gateway connection settings (you need to find out the correct settings on your cell operator's or paid gateway's web site). You also need to configure the message format settings (how the email message should be composed: where the phone number should be specified, etc.) and the email sending settings (mail server address, port, login, password).

Please specify the recipient phone number in the corresponding field on the Check Properties window. It should not contain the + sign.

Failed to send e-mail or SMS message? Learn more about these issues in our FAQ...

Warning! The Email-to-SMS sending method requires an active Internet connection for sending SMS messages using email messages or HTTP requests. If your ISP connection goes down, the program will not be able to send the alerting SMS notifications. Cell operators usually do not charge for outgoing SMS messages sent via email (you need to clarify this issue with your operator). Or, you can find a reliable paid SMS gateway if you cannot find a proper free service.

2. The second option for sending outgoing SMS messages is connecting a GSM cell phone to your PC's USB or COM port and sending SMS directly from the phone.

Requirements

The GSM phone should support connection to a PC using a COM or USB cable. In the USB cable case, you will need to install a driver which will create a virtual COM port on your system (you will need to know this COM port's number). This driver is usually included to the software provided with your phone. The phone should also contain a GSM modem supporting basic AT commands. Before trying to send an SMS using the program, you need to check that the phone's modem is operating well using special software provided with your phone (for example, "PC Suite", etc.). After that, you can start configuring our program for sending SMS messages directly using your phone.

Configuration

On the SMS settings dialog, select the second SMS sending option Send SMS via the GSM Phone. You need to select a correct COM port, select Baud rate (57600 by default), and provide the AT initialization string (ATE0 by default).

Click the Test... button to test the connection with your phone. The program should gather some information (the SMS center number etc.) from the phone and display it on the screen. If the test was run successfully, the program will likely be able to send SMS messages. If the SMS center number is not stored on the phone's SIM card, you can specify it in the corresponding field (Please do not specify the + sign before the country code. For example, 19037011111).

Warning! The outgoing SMS will be charged as usually when you send them using the phone. Please configure the alerting SMS notifications having in mind you will have to pay for them. Long messages can be split into several smaller messages.